COMPARISON BETWEEN THREE METHODS OF COMPOSTING SOLID ORGANIC WASTE FROM DOMESTIC SOURCES

Abstract

The generation and disposal of Urban Solid Waste (USW) represents a problem for the whole society, not being restricted only to Brazil. Organic matter represents the large portion of USW in Brazil, therefore, its treatment is essential to reduce the volume of USW to be sent to landfills. To ensure the efficiency of the composting process, it is important that some aspects are observed, in order to provide favorable conditions for the metabolism of decomposing organisms. Thus, this work aimed to study and compare 3 (three) different methods of composting organic household waste: Vermicomposting, aerated compost, and static compost. The treatments were performed with three replications, using three buckets for each experiment. The variables analyzed weekly were: weight (kg), pH, temperatures, moisture content and volume of leachate generated, in order to observe the waste decomposition process. Parameters such as slurry volume and weight demonstrate that aerated composting has advantages in the decomposition time of organic waste, being, therefore, the most recommended method for home composting.